Posted!

Join the Conversation

Comments

Welcome to our new and improved comments, which are for subscribers only.
This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.
You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.

You will need to register before adding a comment.
Typed comments will be lost if you are not logged in.

Please be polite.
It's OK to disagree with someone's ideas, but personal attacks, insults, threats, hate speech, advocating violence and other violations can result in a ban.
If you see comments in violation of our community guidelines, please report them.

Putting money in the Mountain Home Food Basket

Helen Mansfield, Special to The Bulletin
Published 9:01 p.m. CT June 28, 2018

Every year as part of National Nurse’s Week, nurses at Baxter Regional Medical Center always try to find a community service project to dedicate their time and money to.

This year, Director of Endoscopic Services Barb Dyson, says the group decided to collect donations for the Mountain Home Food Basket. The nurses began collecting money amongst themselves, but before they knew other staff members were donating money to the cause.

“I was hoping we’d collect $1,000,” Dyson said, back when it was just the nurses making the donations.

National Nurses Week was April 30-May 5, followed by National Hospital Week, May 7-11. Both entities consolidated their efforts and by the time all was said and done, they gathered a grand total of $3,600.

“We wanted to give to the food basket because we know it can be tough in summer for them to get food,” Dyson said. “We’re really proud.”

Debra Barreda, food buyer for the Mountain Home Food Basket puts up a delivery of dry goods at the Mountain Home Food Basket.(Photo: Helen Mansfield/Special to The Bulletin)

Along with regular cash donations, BRMC staff also had the option to do a one-time payroll deduction.

“We would like to see this become an annual event,” Dyson added.

While $3,600 is a pretty good chunk of money, Debra Barreda, food buyer for the food basket, says that donation will allow the food basket to purchase a little more than two weeks’ worth of food for their participants.

Unlike other agencies, the food basket focuses on supplementing food items for seniors and families to fill in the gaps around their SNAP benefits; their goal is not to feed a family for an entire month or just provide food for area children.

Founded in 1985, the Mountain Home Food Basket is an all-volunteer organization and depends on donations to purchase most of its food for area families. Their goal is to supplement food items for families to fill in the gaps around their grocery benefits.(Photo: Helen Mansfield/Special to The Bulletin)

Founded in 1985, the Mountain Home Food Basket is an all-volunteer organization and depends on donations to purchase most of its dry goods from the Food Bank of North Central Arkansas. Though they purchase those goods at a discounted rate, donations have been decreasing as the area need is increasing.

Barreda said the food basket helped 984 families during the month of May, which is 100 more than in April, and twice the number of families from May of 2017.

Now that the facility has a freezer, Ratzel said they can keep ground beef and hot dogs on site. Through the kindness of Town & Country Discount Foods and Harps, they will often pack “a little extra” along with the food basket’s regular orders.